Hope during somber times: a defining moment

Abstract

Among the diverse educational materials furnished by the National Cancer Institute for patients, caregivers and healthcare providers, an online dictionary is maintained. The dictionary endeavors to provide concise definitions for the glossary of terms used in modern oncology. The dictionary continues to be regarded as a valuable data reserve because it is updated at frequent intervals and deftly employs language that is commensurate to the comprehension of lay users as well as professionals. In this Commentary, we call attention to the absence of the word “hope” as an entry in this important digital resource. Moreover, we propose not only inclusion of the concept of hope in this vital reference text, but also operationalization of its meaning based on C.R. Snyder’s model for “hope theory,” which stresses the importance of three entities (ie, goals, pathways thinking, agency). Finally, we argue that hope can be taught as a skill to the relevant stakeholders (eg, patients, caregivers, HCPs) through brief workshops that have recently been expanded from in-person encounters to virtual platforms revolving around the axis of a user-friendly mobile app (“Hopetimize”).

Hope‐enhancement interventions: A third wave coalesces

“…For instance, a smartphone app can enable extension of the hope mapping exercise into the daily lives of participants after the initial intervention has ended. 23,24 Such an app allows participants to revise their goals, pathways, and sources of agency as the conditions of their lives change or as they achieve (or have difficulties achieving) the goals they set during the intervention itself. Future research will determine whether the inclusion of such a tool can extend or sustain the effects of more traditional hope interventions.…”